Friends in High Places
by MayhemPrincess
Summary: The Ones meant to guide them, left them behind in a sea of Darkness that threatened to drag them down. Now on on the verge of the world's end, Heaven turns its gaze to earth's champions, returning to them the chance they had been denied.
1. Prologue

_**Disclaimer: **__Not mine... and do I really have to tell you guys that? I own my phone, my laptop, tv and clothes...that's it. Do you think I own Buffy? If so, I fear for your sanity._

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_**Friends in High Places**_

_**Prologue: You're not the Bosses of me**_

_****BtVS****_

**I**t was ridiculous!

They were the higher beings closest to mortals. Tasked with their protection and the selection of mortal champions...yet they sat on their asses and let this reality become what it was about to...

A world without magic.

A world where their greatest warriors would be lost and alone...cut off from their guidance...not that they were doing such a great job with the guiding...if they allowed this to happen.

Thousands of potential slayers gone, replaced with "defective Slayer copies" The slayer line stuck with no place to go. The Last of the Chosen destined to take the Line to the grave with her...a dark future of returning demons and the Power's attempt to recreate the Line that died with Faith.

Melaka...poor Melaka all alone, no watcher, no true knowledge of the Slayer...and power that did not compare to the real thing...not even the dreams meant to aid her she kept.

All because They left their champions on their own, fighting their inner demons with no help...or help in the form of cryptic messages no one understood until it was too late.

God! Even she could not understand most of them and she was a Higher Being! Higher than the "Powers" even.

So Champions were left feeling like glorified tools most of the time, while They sat on their behinds doing nothing as the enemy slowly filled with darkness the hearts and souls of this world's protectors.

They claimed interfering would damage the balance. But, what kind of balance was THIS? When the enemy actively corrupted or destroyed the elements of good around the world and the side of good barely moved a finger?

"Balance, my ass!" Such words coming from a Higher Being, had everyone present gasp...or the equivalent for those lacking vocal chords...or mouths. What you thought the "Powers" looked Human or something?

"What do you intent to do then? We have seen already what our interfering can do!" Said one of the Powers. "Were the thousands who perished because of U-" But "he" was interrupted by the first voice.

"First of all...don't bother with the name. You know well it's not just humans who can't pronounce it." Said the voice. "Second. I am not Janice. I believe the protection of that world rests on its Champions shoulders. But you choose them and then expect them to know what to do. You give them cryptic words or images, and call them lower beings when they seek you out, but then complain that they sometimes can't carry the weight. YOU call THEM lower beings and yet you forget that as MORTALS they are flawed!" The frustration in the word was beginning to be felt by the other beings present. Reminding them that this one in front of them was not someone to defy.

She could feel it. And it made her smile inside. Intimidation worked best on them.

"You forget that even though they were given such responsibility, they are still as mortal as those they are supposed to protect. That they are just as capable of evil as they are of good...just like any other MORTAL .. or inmortal in some cases...but hey! They are still lower beings as far as you are concerned, no matter how hard they fight for their world. You ignore the fact that while they have the potential to be a great force of good, they can be corrupted by the Darkness that fills the world! A Darkness that sometimes is the only thing they can see! No wonder they fall, if they feel like their efforts are worth nothing!"

Anger now instead of frustration. The Powers began to fear for their continued existence.

"Evil is not going to stand and wait for our Champions to reach their potential! NO! It will seek to either destroy them or turn them to its side!" The voice paused and the Powers that Be dared not move or say a word. "No...Evil does not stand waiting...but it seems YOU do..."

WELL NOT ANYMORE!

She did not say it. But they could feel it pouring from her.

"There is the proof of your failure..." She said pointing to the image of the blonde Slayer a second away from destroying the Seed. "You let this happen. You knew the Twilight prophecy was not absolute...you knew. And yet it seems like every action you took since Angelus was given a soul led to this. You showed Angel the Slayer when you knew she was not the one he was meant to help. But you did not tell him that, did you?"

"His presence was needed for the boy to reach the Slayer in time! There would not have been two if-

"Shut up!" It's mouth-yes this one had a mouth- snapped shut.

"If you had bothered to guide him properly. He would have known She was not his! That she was meant for his charge. A charge, he as a mortal had loved and protected once. He would have left the Hellmouth as soon as the new Slayer was activated in search of HER!"

They could not move...could not defend themselves, They couldn't even speak.

"And lets NOT FORGET! That he was supposed to be guided to the right person LONG before the seed of Darkness was planted in HER. But NO! You left a child...an innocent you knew was meant for greatness... meant to be our Champion... not just a Champion but THE CHAMPION. You let evil corrupt those around her...those meant to LOVE her, protect her! AND YOU DID NOTHING!"

Once more gasps could be heard. Fear seemed to be the only thing They were capable of, as they felt Her power.

"If anything...you did EVERYTHING to make sure She fell! Every single action you took, when you decided to do something that is, did nothing but push her further away from our side! It says a lot about our Champions the He eventually helped Her and that She let Herself be helped. She came back to us...but she still has to fight the Darkness and pain everyday. A pain that will eventually make her let a demon suck her emotions, her morals, everything she fought for, just to stop the hurt. But it's not just her. There are hundreds of our warriors walking a similar path while you ignore your SACRED duty! The duty HE GAVE YOU!"

She paused. And suddenly They KNEW that whatever she said next would affect them for the rest of their existence.

"From this moment on... You are no longer to have ANY contact with any world...or any warrior, Slayer, messenger, balance demon or conduit. You will not interfere AT ALL. You will be bound to this plane, powerless...and wait for judgment..." She said smiling.

"Which, by the way, will not happen till the End of Days! And wow...it's a long wait isn't it? Because by the time that happens I can't even count how much time will have passed here. I hope you enjoy your stay. Oh and don't worry about your jobs! Me and my kind, will take care of your duties from now on... while you all rot here..." Her gloating was interrupted by a cough.

"Oh, right. All of you except for Miss Chase. As the only one actually doing her job, we felt she deserved to be rewarded."

A beautiful (and once again Holy) brunette stepped away from the other Powers and smiled at them in full Queen C mode. "Have fun! Oh and don't come back! I don't want to be seen with the likes of you...it would be Horrible for my reputation...worse than the whole dating Xander Harris phase." With that she waved at them as both her and her companion slowly faded from that plane.

Some of the Powers attempted to stop them. "You cannot do THIS! We-

"You gonna what?" Said the Higher Being next to Cordelia. "I don't know if you remember, but you're not the bosses of me!"

And the last thing the "Powers" heard was Queen C laughing at them, as the two disappeared.

Once back on Earth Cordy turned to her companion. "So now what?"

The Blond being next to her smiled. "Now, my Boss is gonna have a little talk with them. You know to scare them into sitting on their behinds for the rest of their existence...pretty sure they won't try to argue with HIM."

Cordy raised an eyebrow. "Shame I don't get to see that...I kinda wanted an autograph too."

"Oh he doesn't give them without an appointment...he's kinda busy all the time. " She laughed. "But I'll see if I can get you one...shouldn't be that hard, He's a sucker for a Pretty face."

The being winked at Cordelia. "But, to answer your REAL question." She said looking at the Golden Slayer moving in slow motion about to destroy the Source of magic in this world. "We'll have to fix their mess...Oh and you're going back to High School!"

"WHAT!"

Was Cordelia's horrified scream as time stopped completely just before the Scythe touched the Seed...

... And then rewound.


	2. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer: **__Nope, still not mine..._

_**Friends in High Places**_

_**Chapter One: A Very Weird Day...or the End of the World**_

_**FiHP**_

Today was going to be a great day!

Or that's what she thought when she first woke up this morning. It was the first day of school and everything was perfect! Her skin looked amazing, her hair looked even better and her outfit was great! All she had to do was drive to school and let everyone admire her perfection.

...but then she remembered.

Although the word ascended would be more accurate. And the memories were just a part of the package...so was the light show for that matter. So when the servants came into to the room to find out what had caused the fireworks, it only took a little wave of her hand to blame it on her hairdryer...or what was left of it.

Well, even if she had to go back to Hell School, at least, she kept her powers. Good for her.

...or not as she couldn't feel any of the other 'Powers' and as much as the idea of being in charge appealed to her, it's not like they were around for her to rub it in their faces. That and she bet all their, well her agents now, could feel the shift, now that the Powers that Screwed the world up were suddenly absent. Actually, considering just how absent the old PTBs were before, they probably didn't even noticed.

Great just great! She had to let every seer, and other direct links know there was a new boss, which required a meeting as she was NOT going to give them horribly painful visions and leave them alone to figure out their meaning.

Oh God the paperwork!

And the damn taxes! The worst news she received when she first became a Higher Being. She had to pay taxes! Stupid (IRS)... she always suspected they were demons.

"Benevolent demons? My, Holy and extremely hot, ass!" She mumble under her breath. "Should not be legal stupid Higher Laws screwing up with me."

She needed a Lawyer...a non evil lawyer. She stopped her car suddenly, nearly making the car behind her crash into her. A crazy idea was taking form in her mind. She was a genius!

_'But really... coming back to this place!'_ She thought looking at the building from hell. Or the building on top of hell depending on who you asked.

Ugh...or maybe she was an idiot because her idea meant she had to get good grades. And even though her "Power that is Hot" status gained her universal knowledge... as far as the mortal world knew Cordelia Chase was not the best student around, the hottest? Definitely. But, top of her class? Yeah...she could hear everyone's laughter already...mostly her parent's laughter.

As she parked her car she asked. "How am I supposed to solve the world's problems AND get good grades without it being suspicious...or messing with everyone's head? I'm a Higher Being NOT a Higher God or Willow!"

...Wait a second.

Oh yes, she was a genius.

_**FiHP**_

She could definitely hear the laughter now. Not only here but in a higher plane as well. Her new blonde 'friend' was enjoying this up there.

Xander was laughing at her in disbelief at what she had just told Willow. He thought she was trying to trick them from the moment she approached them without uttering a single scathing remark. Well the stupid idiot!

Here she was, being nice and actually apologizing for the way she had treated them before, and he found it funny! Completely lost it when she mentioned her career plans and asked Willow help in achieving her goal. How dare he! And she even had decided she was totally not blaming them for what their future selves had done and...well okay maybe a little but they hadn't done anything yet...not like it would happen this time around. There would be no dating of Xander Harris this time.

At most she would try to be friends... friendly acquaintances, well at least she'd try not to be too bitchy.

The redhead, however, having realized the Cheerleader was serious, looked confused, shocked and kind of scared. "You want to..." Willow squeaked. Her eyes wide.

"Yes." Cordelia, somehow, managed to say sincerely while rolling her eyes at Xander. "I know you have no reason to believe me, but I promise I'm not possessed or something." She smiled trying to contain her annoyance at Xander's renewed bout of laughter. "I really am sorry. I can't excuse the way I've treated you guys. But, I mean it. I want to change the way things are, and I don't want to be the person that every one thinks I am, that my parents made me become."

She looked sharply at Xander. "Sometimes people put up walls of bitchiness or _humor_ to try and convince everyone and themselves that nothing affects them. That they don't hurt inside."

Well that shut him up.

There was a reason she had dated the guy. They were more similar than they liked to admit. If for different reasons, they put up those damn walls. Something that everyone did, but that they sometimes took to the extremes when mixed with their stubborn nature. Their walls were pretty damn strong and most of the time hurt them as much as they protected them. They kind of shared that with Faith too, actually.

Which, Cordy hoped, she could put to good use when they met the brunette slayer. Even after she grew up so much as a person in L.A. She still had not been able to forgive the girl. Not only for what she did to her friends, but because the girl had the most expressive eyes Cordy had ever seen. Even with her walls up, and the amount of pain in there only served to remind Cordelia of her own pain.

Once she ascended though.

That thing possessing her hadn't lied to Angel when it told him Cordy had seen what he did as Angelus. She had. She also saw Xander's life. Confirming the abuse and neglect she had always suspected, his parents put him through. He turned out okay though... well sort of.

But it was Faith's life that truly horrified her. She had a feeling it would have horrified even Angelus if he'd seen it. Probably sent him into a rage if he'd known just who... well never mind that for now. Cordy certainly felt the horror of what she'd gone through...and of what the scoobies and Cordelia herself had unintentionally done to push the slayer over the edge.

Cordy had considered trying to be friendly with her, but her damn eyes and Cordelia's jealousy at Xander's behavior around Faith, made her push that thought out of her head.

So Yeah. Cordy had quite a few regrets, and just because she was a Higher Being now, didn't mean she couldn't try to fix them now she had a second chance. That meant no more Queen C, unless you really deserved it...or really annoyed her.

"I-ahh-I uhh...if you really... I mean s-sure...water... and a b-bridge over it...with the water under...y-yeah and time! To p-process...I mean...and yeah L-law s-school with you know all t-the Law and high grades a-nd y-you... and m-me with the h-helping yeah uh... yeah s-sure...with-"

Cordelia had to stop the babble fest, or they'd be here all day. "Really!? Great!" She said smiling at the redhead. She knew it was probably too much for the girl's mind at the moment, and she didn't want her passing out on her. But even if she didn't completely believe her, Willow had already agreed...sort of, in the middle of her babble, to help her out. Cordy would prove she meant what she said during the time they would spend studying and at school...in public even. "I'll call you later so we can come up with a schedule or something, and maybe we can hang out at Lunch."

"L-lunch!" Another squeak by the redhead.

Even Xander was looking completely shocked and overwhelmed now. There definitely was some major lack of blinkage going on with his eyes. "Yup!" She said making a mental note to make sure he kept both of them this time, and excused herself to go to her next class, leaving them standing there gaping at her retreating form.

"T-this has been a very weird day so far..."

Xander, now gaping at Willow, couldn't help but laugh again... with no humor this time, just pure, unadulterated and very real fear. "Weird? Are you mad!? She was nice! SHE APOLOGIZED!" He was hyperventilating now. "It's the end of the world!"

_**FiHP**_

School day out of the way.

Now it was time to start working on one of the main reasons, the Powers were terminated, axed, canned, shown the door, laid off, given the pink slip, sacked...and banished to the World with Nothing but Manillow...

Relaxing on the couch in her small office while they were trapped there, Cordy almost pitied them. Almost. No one in their right mind would survive the first couple of hours there...except maybe Angel...but then he wasn't quite right in the head anyway.

"Miss Chase, Mr. Whistler and Mr. Doyle are here as you requested." Her secretary's voice announced through the intercom.

Cordy smiled. Going over to her desk to give her new secretary an answer.

"Great! Send Whistler in. And have someone bring Mr. Doyle something to drink while he waits."

"Of course, Miss Chase." She loved having a secretary. And she totally loved what she was about to do.

Her eyes focused on the balance demon when he came through the door.

He looked at her and gulped. "Ma'am?"

"Whistler! Hi, don't bother sitting this won't take long." She said sweetly. Now, anyone who knew Cordelia Chase would have run like hell the moment they heard that tone in her voice.

Whistler didn't know her. "err Okay.."

"After reviewing all of your cases, particularly Angel's and the ones you took after his, I've decide it would be best to transfer you another plane. As a new approach is to be taken regarding his case. That said I felt you deserved some form of recognition for all your hard work." With that she went over to his side of the desk and giving him an envelope.

Whistler, confused but somewhat relieved, took the envelope and opened it to reveal...a pink...what the?

"Oh, by the way say hi to the Powers and Skip for me!" She said happily. Thoroughly enjoying the panicked look on his face when the content of the envelope and her words clicked in his head right before he disappeared.

"Lia? Have Mr. Doyle come in, please. Oh and give Whistler's cases except for Angel's to one other case workers who passed their evaluation."

"Right away, ma'am."

Yes she was really liking being in charge.

"Ah...you wanted to see me ma'am?" Doyle's voice asked from the door bringing a big smile to her face.

"That I did Mr. Doyle! Please take a sit. I wanted to personally let you know that the Seers program will be undergoing some major upgrades. Brain damaging headaches are a thing of the past now!"

"What..

"No one will be receiving any visions at all while the upgrades are been implemented though, which is one of the reasons I had you come to see me personally." She said giving him a dazzling smile.

"Ma'am?"

"Ah, none of that! You can call me Cordy. And I'll call you Doyle. We are, after all, going to be working together from now on. You see Doyle. I have a very important assignment for you!"

_**FiHP**_

When the two Higher beings met again and having finally calmed down after laughing their asses off, at the mortals' reactions to the 'New Cordelia'. They discussed the finer details of the brunette's plan. The woman, who scared the PTB's like no one Cordelia had ever met, and was powerful enough to strip them of their power and banish them to a place that made the World with Nothing but Shrimp seem like heaven; agreed that it was a solid plan and certainly would put a lot of bad guys in trouble.

And just like that. A minor time fold and a very carefully selected group of employees later, a new force of good made it's appearance in Los Angeles...and if it all worked out several offices around the world would follow, of course.

"It makes sense. Can't believe it never occurred to anyone before...then again The Powers were in charge, so yeah". Said Cordelia's new partner in crime. Or was she her new boss? The blonde (...or well she was a redhead now...what was with that?) Higher Being hadn't made that very clear. "I knew we did the right thing keeping you around. Letting you return to earth as a human was considered." The 'woman' said smiling. "You know...having a second chance at life. Free of the supernatural. It would have meant erasing your memories though. And we felt that was not something you would have wanted."

"Really? Well, that's a nice change. It can get pretty old really fast, having a bunch of Higher Being messing with your head." Cordy raised an eyebrow. "Does that mean not every one up here are big jerks like The Powers were?"

The Higher being smirked. "Well, I'm sure there are some...or quite a few jerks left. But they sure as hell follow the rules...and with what happened to the Powers I'm sure they'll try to keep in line anyway."

The thought of the Power's fate never failed to make Cordelia feel all warm inside. "So, what made you decide to keep me as the only 'Power'?...ugh, I need to find a new name. I don't wanna be called that anymore."

"You do that. I never liked what they called themselves...arrogant luridi branco di cani bastardi..." She trailed of mumbling. Then shook her head. "But never mind. We can get together for some shopping and PTB bashing after we get things done. To answer your question. We thought you could be a great asset as a Higher Being. You managed to get some things done even when they kept interfering to keep their beloved 'Balance'."

Ah, yes the Balance. Cordy was sure the word alone got the old Powers off every time it crossed their minds. Eww...bad thoughts!

The now redhead smirked as if knowing what Cordelia was thinking, but continued explaining. "At the same time it seemed unfair to burden you with all of the PTB's duties and not giving you an escape from all the stress that comes with your new responsibilities. You are capable of living in the mortal plane as well as here, as you noticed when you woke up there. Unfortunately, while we fix the mess the powers left us with, you can't exactly relax and spend all your time sunbathing in Hawaii or something..." She trailed off cocking her head in thought. "Well, actually you can do that too, as long as you also remain here and in Sunydale dealing with things. I'll show you how to be in several places at the same time. You are going to love it! Definitely helps with the paperwork.

"I can do that?" That definitely was a surprise to her. While, she was omniscient on some level, it could be blocked with enough magic. A LOT of magic but it could happen. If the person doing it was someone as powerful as say... Willlow at her witchiest. But not indefinitely, as it would drain the caster of their magic eventually. A Higher Being definitely could last longer at it, but only if: A) She wasn't their boss or; B) They were more powerful than her.

And with here being the only...nope, she would not say Power, no sir... 'Hot chick with superpowers' as Faith would say, worked for now while she came up with something original; but anyway she was the only HCwS on her level for the moment, she could only be blocked out by her Bosses, the Senior Partners and probably the First Evil even weakened as it had been for the last few billion years (...and yet it outsmarted Buffy and got her to kill the Slayer line)

But back to the matter at hand. Her Self, her essence, not just her awareness, and if she was getting it right, even her body? The Powers certainly hadn't done that, at least she didn't think so.

"Oh yes! I forgot to tell you. You've been promoted!" The woman said as she dropped into a chair. A chair that had just appeared, just like their new location. "This is your new office! Much better than the one you had before, isn't it? It's even connected to the building you chose for you little project."

Well, looking around she had to admit it was pretty nice. Actually, it was amazing! Kind of put Angel's W&H office to shame. Feeling a bit smug, she sat down on the comfy chair behind the desk. "Promoted?" She asked. A 100 Watt smile on her face.

"Yup! We knew, your new status as the Hottest Boss the beings of this plane of existence have ever had, would require more that just a Higher Being." She said winking at Cordy "So with your new position you also get Their power." Oh. Well damn. Now, she_ really_ wanted to rub that in Their faces! "I did tell the powers that me and my kind would take care of their duties. You are one of us now, sis!"

And the surprises kept coming! Cordelia had to admit it. From the moment she met the woman her life had been anything but dull. "And who is us, exactly? Because I've only met you so far and you still haven't told me your name."

"Why, sis! That's an excellent question! If anyone in the mortal plane ever asks you that, you're _really_ going to enjoy the look on their faces...Personally, I'm really fond of the light effect they use on that TV show...oh and the name's Cristina by the way." She trailed off smiling at the shocked disbelief on the brunette's face, when a beam of light descended upon the redhead.

"Get out!"

_**FiHP**_

AN: So how did you like that? Think it's worth it to keep going with this fic? Let me know if you like this chapter.

Next Chapter: Lots of Angel...and probably some Faith too. And hey, maybe I'll let you know when the hell things are happening...maaayybe.

See Ya!

Kat


	3. Chapter 2

_**Friends in High Places**_

_**Chapter Two: Bedtime Story**_

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_**FiHP**_

_**November 14**__**th**__**, 1988**_

His new boss was hot.

'_And she was sooo flirting with me.'_ Doyle thought. Definitely NOT what he'd been expecting when a little, pointy-eared balance demon kid showed up at his door and told him the he had been summoned by the "Boss-lady" as he called her. He'd known something big had happened. It was also certain that every single seer under the Powers knew too. The sudden silence was a big clue, for one thing. Sure, Doyle's visions weren't continuous, like the ones some of his coworkers had. They only were accompanied by killer headaches…oh and you know the occasional gaping wounds that if he wasn't a half-demon would probably kill him. But, because he was half-human, hurt a LOT more than they would on a full demon. But none of that meant he wasn't always aware of their presence. There was always a low buzz in the back of his head. It was gone now though.

Complete silence.

Doyle hadn't known how to feel about that. On one hand it could mean he was free from the visions. It could also mean something had happened to the Powers. Or that he was in need of a new job. Or both. So when the kid showed up and said there was a "change in management" and that Doyle's presence was required by this Boss-lady, Allen Francis Doyle was almost ready to wet his pants.

The Powers that Be were gone.

The Powers that Be were gone, and there was only one new "Boss". Such a huge change meant that someone or something a lot more powerful than the PtB got rid of them…ALL of them, and that alone was a scary thought, and took their place. Doyle could only hope whoever this Boss-lady was that she didn't have evil plans for the world…or for him.

So, with no other choice he went to meet his doom.

If he was honest now, maybe doom wasn't such a bad thing. Not if it took the form of a gorgeous lass, who not only flirted with him every two minutes while she briefed him on his new job. But she ridded him of the painful visions! They will be pain free instructions now instead of the brain numbing cryptic flashes of images. And did he mention pain free?

If she was some evil mastermind she was a very good one too, because she hid it really well. Assigning him to one of the Champions, that's right with a capital "C"! Well… two Champions apparently since the guy was a mess right now, (or is it back then?) and he needed to shape up if he was going to take care of the kid. For now Doyle was to stay with both Champions in the past, and make sure the big guy did a good job with the lass… how? Doyle had no idea. Doyle had no experience with kids. It couldn't be that bad, right?

Right?

He shook his head trying to clear his thoughts. _'First things first.' _He thought. Doyle tightened his grip on his bag and walked into the dark alley. 'Time to find Champion number one…' And he didn't even have to look for him; the smell was enough to guide him… also the rat…

The guy has been surviving like this for decades, and would continue like this several more years in the original timeline. It was pathetic, really.

There he was…in all his disgusting smelly, rat-sucking glory. "No one ever tell you fast food is not good for your health?"

The homeless man feeding from the rat jumped startled. The rat dropped from his hands and he moved away from the man in front of him, afraid he couldn't control himself and drain him…until he smelled him. The man wasn't human. "Stay away from me."

"Sorry. I can't really do that. I've some things to discuss with you, Angelus."

Angel looked at him in surprise. "Who are you? You don't smell human…"

"Now that's a bit rude. So happens that I am very much human." Doyle said. Then sneezed and blue spikes popped out all over his face. "On my mother's side." He shook his head and made the spikes disappear. "The name's Doyle." Doyle had to smile internally. Sure he was putting up a show to keep the vamp on his toes. And hey! It was working. Now he certainly had the man's attention.

"What do you want?" Angel asked, keeping his eyes on him. He was too weak right now and if this man attacked him…

Here it was. Time to give the man the story. Doyle hoped this worked. He didn't want to fail Cordy. _'Oh, man. I've got it bad.'_ Who could blame him though? His new boss was one gorgeous woman. "I've been sent. – By the P-eh I mean by a Higher Being." He had to backtrack and change his words mid speech when he felt as if someone had pinched his ass…really hard.

Ouch!

He better make sure to never call her a Power or he was going to lose his better cheeks. Gorgeous or not the lass could be vicious. He was sure it was going to bruise. _"And don't you forget it!"_ He heard her voice in his head. Great. She was watching!

The Vampire noticed his hesitation and raised an eyebrow, when Doyle tried, and failed, to rub his butt without the Master vampire noticing. "A Higher Being?"

"Right." Doyle nodded. "She is in charge of watching over earth and is responsible of locating and guiding champions find their path. The Powers that Be, a group of Higher Beings, used to be in charge but they made a mess of things and their Bosses weren't very happy with that. So she is now in charge." Quite a bit of information there, but Cordy made it clear that the big guy was too important to be kept in the dark. And hey it also gave Doyle an opening.

"What does that have to do with me? What would this Higher Being want with me?" Asked Angel confused. He was worthless, a killer. Why would a Higher Being be interested in him? Unless it was to kill him? But then why send this guy to talk?

Ah there was his chance. "To help you." The half-demon said. "To fix the mess the Powers made of your life…" At Angel's narrowed eyes Doyle reached into his bag. "Here. Take this. I have a long story to tell and you look like you are going to pass out at any moment." Doyle said throwing a blood bag at the souled vampire.

Angel's eyes widened. He wanted to be careful. He didn't think this Doyle meant him any harm but still… the smell of blood however was too overwhelming and trap or not he couldn't resist. Angel bit into the bag and emptied it in less than a minute.

"Feeling better?" Doyle asked a little nauseous. His job was disgusting sometimes.

"Good." He said when Angel nodded. "Now. Let me tell you a bedtime story."

"But, I'm not sleepy." Angel interrupted him.

"Well, you really are feeling better! Guess that enhanced blood really wor-

"Enhanced?" The vampire asked narrowing his eyes. So there had been something in the blood…though he had to admit it didn't feel like a bad thing.

Doyle rolled his eyes. "Yeah, one bag has the effect of a couple of healthy young humans would usually have on a vamp, don't worry it's magically enhanced otter blood. Now stop interrupting. I'm trying to tell a story here!" The seer shook his head annoyed. "Now where was I? Oh right. Once upon a time there was a vampire. And he was the meanest vampire in all the land. All the other vampires were afraid of him, he was such a - bastard. Then one day he's cursed – by gypsies. They restore his human soul. And all of a sudden he is mad with guilt. You know: 'What have I done?' You know, he's freaked."

Angel looked away "Okay. Now I'm sleepy."

"Yeah, well, it's a fairly dull tale." Doyle looked at him. This was the point where everything changed. What he was about to reveal would change the world. Hopefully for the good. If the vamp shut down on him after this there was not much hope for the kid. Or the world for that matter. "But here's the thing. Part of the Power's mess. The gypsies screwed up. In their fury and desire for vengeance they forgot that the torture was for the demon, not the man. They found and used the curse that would make the soul suffer the most, but after it was done they realized their mistake…the curse had a loophole…" Doyle trailed up when the vampire's head snapped in his direction, his eyes wide.

"What?" Angel asked. It could not be true what Doyle was implying. "What kind of loophole?" No…he couldn't lose his soul…if Angelus was ever free again…he could feel HIM. He was excited and very interested in the conversation now. If there was even a possibility… Angel would kill himself.

Doyle looked at him guessing his thoughts. "Now don't you worry I wouldn't be here if there wasn't a way to keep it from happening that didn't involve your death…now let me finish! I was really getting into the story."

Angel just looked at him confused and not knowing how to react. A part of him wanted to grab this guy and force him to tell him everything but enhanced blood or not he was still too weak…and shocked. "Just tell me…"

"Right. Well, yes. The curse had a loophole. If the vampire ever experienced a moment of true happiness… poof. Soul's gone. Now this is a very bad thing…what if the guy falls in love or something? Gets fleshy with his love? And bam! Perfect Happiness. Hell, doesn't have to be sex at all. What if just her telling him she loves him is enough? Hmm? Could be very bad for the world…"

Angel sighed. Relieved. It wasn't like anyone would ever love a monster like him. "That's not going to happen…I'll never be able to be happy."

"Yeah funny thing is. It's already happened before." Doyle smirked at Angel's confused look. "You know how I said the Powers messed up, and that my new boss is trying to fix things. Well, to fix things she had to changes things. Rewind time and create a new timeline…and guess what happened in the first one?"

Angel gulped. "I was happy…I fell in love…lost my soul…" He couldn't believe it. Someone would love him…enough to bring Angelus back. But wait… Doyle said his boss was going to fix it.

"Got in one. And even though you eventually got it back. Having slept with this particular girl made you…ah… eligible for a prophecy that well, pretty much doomed the world and one of the most important champions for good. Fortunately, time was rewound a second before it was too late."

Angel didn't know what to say. Even though his soul was returned…he somehow still destroys the world. "You… are here to fix it?"

Good. It seemed half his job was done. The man would do anything to stop Angelus from coming back, and he didn't seem to be considering suicide. Now came the hardest part. "Yes. I'm here to fix it…or well help you fix it. But you're going to have put in some effort…and that includes letting me finish the story…"

Angel rolled his eyes. "There's more?"

"Hey! It's a good story and I'm a good storyteller so don't complain. Anyway. Yes. This vampire was really screwed over by the Powers. Their lack of action to prevent things from going to hell begun even before he was a vampire, you know?" Doyle paused for effect. The future champion was enthralled by the story. No matter how much he complained. Doyle hoped he wouldn't overreact with what came next. "You see. Before he was a vampire…he was a man. One who was meant to be a champion." He continued ignoring Angel's snort. "Yes, a champion. He had a destiny. To protect and guide another future champion. One who was too young to protect herself, but the enemy…evil forces interfered. They sabotaged the relationship between the man and his father, encouraged the man to walk a path of debauchery, everyday further and further away from his destiny. Eventually the man left his home. And only a few hours later dark forces put a woman in his path…" He trailed off.

"Darla…" Angel whispered the name of his sire. All of this was unbelievable. If it was true…

"Yes, and she killed him. Made him like her…a vampire. But it wasn't his time. He was originally meant to become a vampire but not to lose his soul. He wasn't supposed to be the kind of man he had become and when he was turned. Well, he became a monster. Not because of the demon in him, but because of his cruelty. So there he is, a couple of days later on his way home to kill his family…but the first person he kills is not the man he had disappointed, or the mother who never stood by him. No, the first person he killed was the one thing he loved more in the world. His true attachment to his human life. The little sister he loved…the future champion he was meant to protect in the first place."

Doyle didn't know if vampires could get paler than normal, but he could swear the blood drained form the man's face.

"…Kathy?"

"Oh crap!" Was Cordelia's reaction as she watched, on the screen in her office, as the souled vampire rushed Doyle and held him by his neck against the wall.

_**FiHP **__**FiHP **__**FiHP **__**FiHP**_

_**AN: **:) How about that? No Faith yet, sorry. Next chapter, I promise. I'll even try to update again this week or next week at the most. I promise! You'll get Little Faith soon. _

_Now Cordy wants to ask you guys for help! Since I can't seem to come up with anything to call her and she hates to be called a Pow- OUCH! Cordelia stop with the pinching already! Jesus! It's not like I didn't try and she didn't come up with anything either.._

_...anyway anyone has any suggestion? Before I'm unable of ever sitting again without my butt hurting. ;)_

_Ps. Do you guys realize that 16 years ago today, Buffy the Vampire Slayer aired for the first time? God, I feel old._


	4. Chapter 3

_**Friends in High Places**_

_**Chapter Three: Guardian Angel**_

* * *

"_**You have come back to me!"**_

Doyle struggled to breathe as the vampire's hands closed around his throat. Angel's demonic face staring at him as he pressed the seer against the wall. "What do you want from me!?" The vampire growled at him, while Doyle, futilely, tried to break Angel's hold. "Why are you telling me this!?"

"_**Are you an Angel?"**_

The pressure around his neck increased and Doyle was almost sure this was it for him; the edge of his vision was darkening. If he was going to do something it had to be now. Changing into his demonic face Doyle pushed the Vampire with all his strength. He might be Half-Demon but on his Brachen shape, he was stronger than in his human shape, and with Angel weakened by years of feeding exclusively on rat blood, Doyle managed to push the vampire a couple feet away.

Enough so that he could gasp out a few words out, before Angel regained his balance and attacked again. "She's alive again!"

Angel's reaction was to push him back against the wall; though this time he wasn't trying to squeeze the life out of the half-Brachen. "What!?" Angel growled, while holding Doyle by the shoulders and shaking him. "Stop playing with me!"

Since he could breathe this time, Doyle didn't try to fight back. "I'm not playing! I swear. I told you I was here to help you fix the Power's mess." He really hoped he could get through to the Champion. Get through him and not let him get too happy. "She reincarnated. She's a child right now." Doyle didn't know if the lass getting another chance to live could make him happy enough, or even more broody, but it was better to give him both the good news AND the bad news in one shot, just in case. "But her life and her soul are in danger. She needs your help."

Angel released his hold on Doyle and stumbled back away from him. "…She's alive?" The vampire's eyes looked lost, his face human once more. He didn't know how to react. She was alive! His sister…His little girl. He had loved her so much. He had sworn to always protect her, but then… he abandoned her. He let himself drown in a life of alcohol and whores to hide from his problems…and it led to his death and her murder at his own hands.

"_**Yes, Kathy…I'm your Guardian Angel."**_

As Angelus, he'd thought he was saving her from the life that expected her once he killed their parents. It was better to save her from the pain. He'd thought about turning her. But even as the monster he had become he couldn't bring himself to turn his gentle, loving sister, into a monster like him. He wanted to keep the image of her smile and love intact. The only "loving" emotion that Angelus ever let himself feel.

Until it was done.

"_**Close your eyes for me…"**_

She was dead. And as he gently cradled her in his arms, he realized he would never see her beautiful eyes again. The realization drove him mad. It shaped the mind of the fledging vampire and into a monster worse than any other before him. Angel could feel Him.

Angelus spent most of the time Angel lived on the streets, blocking the real world. Not wanting to see his other half searching the trash to find a filthy rat to feed on and hide away from humans. Even when Doyle mentioned the possibility of Angel losing his soul, Angelus had not been this alert…She was back, and for the first time soul and demon shared the same emotions. Relief, guilt…and when the rest of Doyle's sentence sunk in. Anger.

His faced changed again, and he barely managed to contain himself from attacking Doyle again. "Danger!? What happened to her!?"

Doyle was wary of the growling vamp, but sighed and put on a stern face. "Evil wants her out of the way. She's meant to be a Champion, a very important one at that. It wants to corrupt her soul, turn her to darkness or kill her if it's not possible to make her one of their warriors. Dark forces have corrupted her parents. She's been physically abused since she was very little-" Doyle winced at the growl coming from the vampire.

"What!? WHERE IS SHE!? TAKE ME TO HER!" The bum screamed at him. Doyly had no idea why he hadn't been killed. The way the other man was looking at him…and kind of shaking like he was fighting with the impulse to attack.

"_More like fighting against invisible bonds. SO get to the point already! I'm not allowed to keep him paralyzed forever."_ Cordelia's annoyed voice said in his head.

'_Well, that would explain it.'_ Thought Doyle_. 'Thanks Princess…I-I mean Ma'am, Boss…eh.'_ He trailed off nervously in his mind.

"_Oh…No, no! Princess is fine! I like Princess. Keep with the princess! Cordy is fine too. I-I UGH! Just hurry up with the helping Angel get better and then come back to my office….We need to talk about something…" _

'_Talk… what ab-? _

"_Not now. We'll talk later. Now get on with it!" _

Yet another growl brought Doyle back to the current situation. "Look. I know you want go get her, but killing the messenger won't help you do that." Maybe he should have gotten to the point earlier instead of going with the bedtime story thing. "Being a wild and really terrifying demonic bum won't help her either. You'll just scare her. She's only four years old right now, five in a month. If you want to save her you're going to have to shape up, get some control, a good place to stay, an identity and most importantly a shower." And it better be soon. Social services wouldn't let her stay with a stinky hairy bum, no matter what identity papers and bank accounts say. At least he didn't think they would…

"Fine!" Growled Angel. It took him a while to calm himself down enough and change back to his human face. "But you can't expect me to wait while Kathy is somewhere out there being abused…"

"I know you're worried but she'll be fine. My boss will make sure she's not badly hurt. We can't really stop her Mother until you are strong enough to fight the demon possessing her, but if we interfere before that the demon might just kill the little one to make sure we don't get to her." Doyle sighed. The vampire's facial expression didn't give him hope. "Can you, honestly, tell me that you can fight the demon as weak as you are now? Without getting the girl killed in the process?"

As much as he hated to admit it, Angel knew he couldn't guarantee Kathy's safety…or even his. The effect of the blood Doyle had given him was starting to fade and his body was shaking, and not from fighting against whatever force had stopped him from attacking the half-demon earlier. "Alright…"

"Then come with me." Doyle said to the vampire. "We got you a place to stay for a while. You're going to have to get something else for when we get your sister. My boss said Angelus is filthy rich. "

Angel frowned. Angelus might have accumulated an extraordinary amount of riches over the centuries, but it was blood money and Angel didn't want to use it for anything. _'Are you stupid!? It's for Kathy!'_ His own thoughts betrayed him. If he wanted to give her a good life…

"Right…He-I am." The future Champion sighed. "Doyle…"

"Yeah?"

"Tell me about her…?"

"Well sure, I guess it doesn't hurt to tell ya." Doyle said scratching the back of his head. Of course the big guy would want to know about his little sis. It kind of pained Doyle that he couldn't be too specific though, less the vampire decided to run off to find her on his own.

"…Her name's Faith."

_**FiHP FiHP FiHP FiHP**_

Back in her office, Cordelia let out a sigh. For a while there she had been sure she would have to move Doyle to the posthumous division. Angel sure got aggressive when it came to Faith. Even in the other timeline where he didn't know who she was.

He did hit Buffy for her, something that had surprised Cordy when she found out. It made her wonder if he hadn't changed one slayer obsession for another.

Angel started Faith on the path of redemption and kept guiding her all the way through it. But it wasn't until Cordelia ascended, the first time, that she realized just how much he'd helped the dark slayer. She had known he visited her sometimes in prison, but when she actually saw the memories…

Angel had people inside the prison keeping an eye on her; he arranged for several visits every month, night time visits so that he could see her as often as possible. The Warden, whose sister Angel had apparently saved, gave Angel weekly reports on Faith's progress. Faith was given extra food at nights to make up for her faster metabolism. The prison shrink who was, actually, the warden's sister worked on a special program for Faith with Angel's help. And it was the reason several P.E programs were implemented during Faith's stay. It wouldn't do to cage a restless slayer… the fact that it also helped with several part demon inmates, was just a bonus for the warden.

Even during the time Angel left the A.I crew, because of Darla, he still visited Faith…sure he didn't tell her how far he had fallen, but he hadn't wanted to damage her recovery. And when Buffy died, he didn't leave the country until he was sure Faith would be alright. And it didn't stop him from writing to her from Sri Lanka.

It explained so much, when Cordy found out who Faith really was. Unfortunately, memory loss, Jasmine possession, and a coma had made telling Angel impossible. And when Cordy died the other Powers kept her from revealing too much, then Angel was under Twilight's influence and the rest was history.

"If only the Powers had made sure Angel left Sunnydale after Kendra was called…He wouldn't have slept with Buffy and Twilight would have been nonexistent. Then even if Buffy had still ended up sleeping with Spike, he was soulless and didn't qualify for the prophecy…ugh Necrophilia much? Why couldn't the girl go for the human ones? Or even human looking demons! At least they were alive!" Cordelia exclaimed. Sure, Cordy loved Angel, he had become like a brother to her, but without evil demonic influences, _'Damn you skip!'_ the thought of any human sleeping with Angel freaked the hell out of her.

"Well, can you blame the poor girl?" Cristina said from the couch on the other side of the office. "It's not easy for a slayer to find a worthy bedmate. Humans break a little too easily." She said wiggling her eyebrows.

The "woman" was definitely not the way Cordelia had imagined an Angel (the holy kind not the souled vampire kind) to be. Certainly not an Archangel. Then again, she never imagined she would become one herself either. "Aren't you channeling Faith a bit too much? I didn't think Angels could be so perverted."

"Oh please! It's bad enough that humans think we are all pure, chaste, soft spoken saints. We're people too you know?" Cristina said snorting. "And some of us used to be human…sort of." She rolled her eyes at Cordelia's raised eyebrow. "Yeah, I was human once. Not important now. Anyway as long as we don't break the rules we are allowed to have relationships and love…and yeah that was a hint…princess."

And Cordelia gaped at her sister angel. "I-I …you…"

"Aw, it was obvious with the way you blushed when he called you princess." Cristina smiled at her. "And the way you are blushing now…" She said playfully.

"Let's change the subject." Cordelia said, still blushing. She wasn't a shy person, but for some reason she couldn't stop now. There was no reason at all for this sudden change… except. It was Doyle! Sure he didn't look like much and she'd really have to do something about his taste in clothes. Everyone working for her actually…what were the powers thinking letting their employees dress like…ugh Whistler. And really Doyle wasn't all that better.

"Right…" Cristina said hurriedly. She recognized that look on Cordelia's face, and she did NOT want to get into another conversation about fashion. She shuddered at the thought. "I believe we were talking about Buffy's sex life."

"Ugh!" Cordy shook her head. "I get it. Humans break, slayers get frustrated. But there are a lot of otherworldly beings out there, not as disgusting!"

"But she wouldn't know that would she? It's not like her watcher would have told her…or understood."

"Maybe. All the more reason to get over herself and jump Faith. She definitely spent an impressive amount of time thinking about it!" The Californian Archangel dropped into her chair. "I really wish I'd gotten a skip button when I saw everyone's memories." Horny slayers had very dirty minds, she was worse than Xander!

Not that she would ever admit it, even to herself. "Remind me to kick Hank Summers's ass. Did you know that after Joyce had the Talk with Buffy, he took the girl aside and gave her a stupid lecture about what would happen to her if she ever had improper thoughts about another girl? The girl was terrified to even have female friends for weeks afterwards. The bastard might have been influenced by a demon, but it's not like it took much to make him act like a homophobe. And he was Bisexual himself!"

"Yes, I know. And no you can't kick his ass. I'll take care of him and the demon influencing him. It won't stop him from divorcing Joyce, but maybe he'll actually be a father this time. And less repressed." Cristina said with a smirk.

Cordy narrowed his eyes at her. "What are you up to?"

"You'll see." Cris winked at her. "Anyway. Disgusting or not, I kind of understand what Buffy saw in the vamps."

"Please tell me because for the life of me, I don't get it." Snorted Cordelia. She didn't understand what could possibly make someone decide it was okay to sleep with a corpse. Hot or not.

"Come on think about it! If you put together Angel and Spike's personalities in one being…and made it female…" The older angel trailed off.

"OH MY GOD!" Cordelia's eyes widened. "Faith!" How did she not think about this before! "And she does kind of look like Angel! Brown eyes, dark hair, really hot in leather! Less broody though. And cocky like Spike! They even share the same naughty smirk!"

"See! I mean sure she didn't know Faith when she met Angel, but some people tend to be attracted to qualities their soul mates have, even if they've never met them. Just look at Angel's strange obsession with tiny blonde women. Darla screwed up Liam's life and Buffy wasn't the one for him but he is immortal. He'll meet his blonde eventually. And if we get our way Buffy will jump Faith this time around."

"Wanna bet on when she jumps her?" Asked Cris wiggling her eyebrows.

"Oh God! You really are a pervert, aren't you?"

But still…

"Ten bucks on within the first couple of months."

_**FiHP FiHP FiHP FiHP**_

It took a little under a month to get Angel into an acceptable physical…and mental condition.

Doyle had hoped that with the new, magical otter blood diet and the physical training, the vampire would be in shape in a couple of weeks, but apparently the effect of years of rat blood was a lot worse to a vampire's health than they had thought. It had also taken a while for Angel to be able to walk among humans without nearly losing control.

But by the middle of the fourth week they had gone demon hunting. And other than a couple…well okay a few mishaps, they were fairly successful. The big guy was looking more like a real Champion every day. And now that Mr. Liam O'Connor was as far as the government was concerned an American citizen, and owner of quite a few companies. Well it was time to have a conversation.

"So… you've been doing great."

At this Angel stopped his Tai Chi form and looked at Doyle. Every time they talked about his progress, Angel couldn't help but hope this was the day Doyle would take him to find Ka- no…Faith. But so far it had been a month and nothing. Still. Doyle didn't usually interrupt his Tai Chi sessions…whatever he was going to say was important.

"Great? Good enough to…" He trailed off.

"Yeah. It's time." Doyle smiled. The vampire had taken his training seriously. It would have probably taken a lot longer to get him to this point if not for all the extra hours he put into getting better. Doyle didn't get why the PtB hadn't done this the first time around. Instead they wasted his potential for years and then practically dropped him in the enemy's hands.

And let's not forget what they let the lass go through. Cordy told him she thought they might not have been on Good's side after all. But she needed more proof before she could push for a harsher punishment.

"There are a few things we have to discuss about the situation before we go get her though."

"What kind of things?" Angel asked wearily.

"Saving her mother."

* * *

_**AN:** Okay so I lied! No Faith here either, but hey, the week has a few more days left, you know. And this chapter was longer…and unfinished. SO, I cut it in half to give you guys an update._

_Anyway, I'm still unsure if Faith's mom should survive the confrontation with the demon making her hurt Faith. And if she does I honestly don't know what to name her. What do you guys think? Should she live? Name ideas?_

_Also, when do you guys think Buffy will jump our girl? ;) I MIGHT listen to you and make it happen…_

_Don't forget to review!_

**_Kat_**


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